Sugar sheets and making a Mr Yuk cake

So a friend of mine asked me to make her a Mr Yuk cake. Yes a cake that looked like the symbol of poison that you remember from the 80's. Odd I know.

Now as most bakers know getting true dark black is a challenge and getting really crisp lines in frosting is also a challenge. So I made a basic chocolate chocolate chip cake and added a dirty icing layer nutella using the nutella in place of icing. Then I used lime green fondant to cover the whole cake round. Then here is the new part to me at least . I used Wilton Sugar sheets in black and simply cut the pieces I wanted out using scissors . You can cut whatever pieces you want and they you peel off the backing. Now they say it sticks great to buttercream but was a smidgen too dry to stick to fondant so I used a small kitchen paintbrush and brushed on corn syrup to back of pieces and then placed them with my kitchen tweezers where I wanted them to be. The result was pretty darn great. Now my picture quality was awful but still.

Overall much sharper black lines then I would have gotten otherwise and the friend I made the cake for was over the moon. Additionally this used up less then a third of a sugar sheet so I still have a ton for some future project.

Lobster on a Race boat and why memorable meals are not always the fancy ones

Sorry for my blog absence, but I have been off racing the Annapolis to Newport Race and then hanging out in Newport. However , I did have what I am certain will go down in my personal great meals of all time while in Newport. It was not the hardest preparation but the environment that made it great.

While at the dock in Newport we decided to have a lobster boil on the boat. Corn on the cob, lobsters, butter, wine or beer. One pier over was where the lobstermen sold their lobsters.

So we got 1 1/4 lb lobsters for everyone who was staying on the boat at the dock and I boiled them along with corn and melted some butter. Served alongside cold beer and wine and sunset on a fast raceboat it was the perfect dinner.

Now I should stop showing you pictures of the live lobsters posed all over the boat and instead tell you how to make this happen for yourself. Ok first you sail from Annapolis to Newport in the tropical depression Andrea. Humm you say that is a little to hard. Ok then how easy are these instructions

Boiled lobster dinner

Ingredients

1 lobster per person 

1-2 ears of corn per person 

butter 

1. Obtain live lobsters you want them about 1 1/4 lbs per person. 

2. In largest pot bring water to a rolling boil

3. Put lobsters in head first one at a time prepared to put the lid on top of them so they do not snap out and boil for 18 minutes. 

4. During this 18 minutes at some point stick the husked corn on cob into the boiling water for 5-8 minutes

5. In separate pot melt the butter.

6. Using tongs remove the corn and then the lobsters from the water allowing as much as possible water to drain off. 

7. Serve with melted butter. 

8.Ideally with lobster tools but should you be on a boat not stocked with such items you may find your sailors eating it with the help on a good clean multitool 

Sailboat Strawberry Greek Yogurt Popsicles

I just got these new popsicle molds that look like sailboats. Here they are before I filled them.

Ok they look like capsized sailboats as they are all upside down

I bought them on amazon and the link is here if you want to get some for yourself. I'm thinking of maybe doing these as my first giveaway on this blog. Would this be an item of interest? Tell me in the comments.

Anyway I adore popsicles during the summer once it gets warm they are a great sweet treat to give you a little something cold and they are fun to play with in terms of random ingredients and little bits of different flavors. You an do almost anything with ingredients around the house. Today we are doing Strawberry greek yogurt popsicles ( and this makes them healthy enough that I hereby give you permission to call it part of breakfast) Wait am I the only one who ever eats yogurt popsicles for breakfast during the summer??

Ingredients
12 oz Chobani Strawberry Greek Yogurt
1/4 cup water
1 cup frozen slices strawberries
Juice of 1/2 lime
dash salt

Puree everything  together with your immersion blender or in your blender. These are very large popsicle so this makes enough for 4 sailboat popsicles but used to make 6 of my old molds.

Tasty Sailboat

I also tries layers with this mix and just blended greek yogurt and water. My layers need work but still cute.

Champagne and Prosecco Saver

Rarely do I drink Sparkling wine, and rarer still do I end up with half a bottle left. Last Thursday, however a friend was over and we drank half a bottle of Prosecco (Italian sparkling wine). I put this Champagne saver on the bottle that I got years ago and have never had occasion to use and put the bottle back in the fridge. I forgot about it until tonight, we are now four days later. I saw the bottle in the fridge and thought to myself that it must be flat by now and ruined but uncorked it and it popped and fizzed. I then decided to pour some in a glass and tasted it. The wine in in wonderful condition still full of life and fizz and almost entirely as good as it was on the first day. I'm convinced and will never hesitate to save sparkling wine again. Oh and yes, I am drinking Prosecco while typing this post.

Chocolate Nutella Scones and a Cuisinart Food Processor for my birthday

My parents are wonderful, for my birthday they got me something I have wanted for a long time. They gave me a Cuisinart Food Processor. Ok I know it is a little bit of overkill for a single woman but I do cook a lot ( see this blog) and I am the type to actually use it. Not only that but I meant to make Irish Soda Bread yesterday for St. Patrick but life got in the way. So I had  a bunch of buttermilk in the house, thus scones. Scones are one of the wonderful treats of life. Not feeling like plain scones I amped these ones up with chocolate and nutella. Mmmm nutella seriously that stuff is addictive.

1.Oven was preheated to 400 degree. 

2.In the food processor with the dough blade went 3 cups flour, 1/3 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon baking powder,1 tablespoon coco power, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda. I then pulsed it a few times. 

3.Then added 1 cup chocolate chips and a stick and a half butter cut into pieces. Pulsed until the butter was combined and at the course meal stage. 

4.Then added 4 tablespoons nutella and then started pulsing slowly adding in 1 cup buttermilk.

5. I then put all of the dough onto a silpat lined ( you could use parchment paper) cookie sheet and then spread it out until about 3/4 inch- 1 inch thick rectangle. ( some people prefer scones in rounds in which case make 2 rounds)

Raw dough spread out on silpat( ignore the fact that is an old stained silpat)

6. Bake at 400 degree for 20-25 minutes till firm in center.

7 Immediately upon removing from oven cut into portions using your bench scrapper or a chefs knife. 

8. While they cool it is now time to make the glaze. Also in food processor with the dough attachment put 2/3 cup powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon nutella. Combine together takes about 1 min continuously on.

9. Add 2 oz frangelico hazelnut liquor and then mix again to combine. I stopped mid way to get the powdered sugar in the corner with the scrapper. Combine until very smooth and no powdered sugar lumps. Using a pastry brush ( I highly prefer the silicone type) brush the glaze onto the scones. 

10. Once glaze has dried they are ready eat. You could pretend to be healthy with these and serve with banana slices or just indulge and serve with nothing but a cup of coffee.

Delicious Chocolate Nutella Scones

Boat Provisioning Trick

Next week, I am going with my family on a week long trip where we are chartering a sailboat in the islands.( I promise I will show pictures) We have done this several times before and it is always a great time. I am starting to pack and as such I wanted to show you this trick I  learned over the years. So when you bareboat charter a boat you do not have a chef. Thus you either cook aboard yourself for the week or eat out every meal. My family typically cooks breakfast and lunch and goes ashore for dinner most nights. This is interesting in terms of spices. You do not want to travel with a spice rack nor do you want to buy at inflated island prices a bunch of seasoning you will use only for a meal. The solution is recycling. During the year when you use up one of those little containers that hold a bunch of different sugar sprinkles wash it out and keep it. Use a paper funnel to funnel in spices and then close again and put inside a ziploc and place in your luggage.

Now contains Pepper, Old Bay, Salt, Italian spices,  Red Pepper, and  Taco seasoning

You can see on the jar that it is still embossed with the words Holly Leaves and Red Crystals left over from some Christmas sugar sprinkles. Bonus, you can also just leave it there when you are done and not have to worry about it. You can buy prepackaged combo spice dispensers they are similar however you can not control the spice combo. What I like about this is that only those spices I expect to use are contained in the mini canister.

Handy Silicone Cast Iron Skillet Handle Covers

A few weeks ago I bought these silicone cast iron skillet handle via a promotion that Fab was having. They are only $10 +shipping. 

They have been life changing. I love my cast iron skillet and use it just about every day. Seriously if you do not have one you should get one. But anyway onto the subject of the silicone handle covers. They come in a two pack blue and green although I have just permanently put the blue one of my skillet and have not yet used the green. Instead of always having to awkwardly grabbing an oven mitt you can grab directly on the handle and even leave the handle on while cooking. This makes it so much easier to make really anything and even to clean the skillet. 

Total life changer. I saw via dealnews.com  that Fab was having another special that you get 10 dollars off via this link  which means that you can go follow the link and get these just for the price of shipping. Neither Fab nor dealnews has a clue who I am. I just like these handles and thought you might too.